Patrick Ewing, who for years has been passed over for coaching positions with the Knicks, recently turned down an opportunity to become head coach of the club’s D-League team, the Daily News has learned.

Although Ewing is out of work after not being retained by the Orlando Magic, the former Knicks great, who interviewed for the Charlotte Bobcats head coach position in June, would prefer to work in the NBA. Ewing has previously worked as an assistant coach with the Wizards, Rockets and Magic but has never been offered a job with the Knicks despite numerous openings over the years.

The Knicks currently have a vacancy on their coaching staff but Mike Woodson is expected to hire LaSalle Thompson. It is unclear as to why the Knicks have refused to reach out to Ewing, especially since the club has former Knicks Allan Houston, John Starks, Herb Williams, Larry Johnson and Walt Frazier all under contract.

Houston, who serves as the Erie BayHawks' general manager, conducted the search for a new coach and contacted Ewing. Jay Larranaga coached Erie for one season before accepting a position on Doc Rivers’ coaching staff in Boston. On Monday, Houston told reporters at a charity golf event in Erie that he has hired a replacement but in typical declined to reveal the identity of the mystery coach.

"There are a lot of procedures that we are in the middle of, but we have come down to our finalist," Houston said. "We're very happy. Very excited."